Letters To The Editor

I would like to respond to the Page 1 article [Oct. 27, ``Lead Poison: City At Risk''] regarding the disarray in the lead program in the city of Hartford.

My husband, Ken Eliason, has been a lead inspector for the city for 11 years. I would like to start by saying that my husband has suffered from two strokes over his lifetime. Part of his demeanor from the strokes is that he does not keep his head erect, but tends to droop his head downward, and I can see how some people might think that he is sleeping at his desk, but actually he is awake and aware of his surroundings.

Yes, he did have an accident with the city car. It was a very narrow driveway with overgrown bushes on the driver's side. I am surprised that The Courant would even find this newsworthy. Does The Courant have any idea how many accidents inspectors have had with city vehicles? One only needs to take a look at all the dents and dings on city cars to know that accidents happen every day to all people.

The blame does not lie with the lead inspectors for cases being investigated late. Case files often were held for days before they were even turned over to the lead inspectors. It is hard for inspectors to investigate cases when they have not had the information turned over to them in a timely fashion.

Susan R. Eliason

Bloomfield

Is There Danger

In Dental Fillings?

Kathleen T. Bailey's claim that there is no safe level of mercury [Other Opinion, Nov. 1, ``Filling Up On Mercury''] does not square with the facts.

Toxicology, the science of poisonous substances, tells us that the dose makes the poison. We constantly ingest a plethora of vicious toxins with which nature laces our fruits and vegetables, but at harmlessly low dosages. This is also true for mercury, two-thirds of which is emitted into the environment by nature.

But is the amount of mercury in dental fillings dangerously high? Ms. Bailey's statement that the mercury in one filling would render the fish in a 10- to 20-acre lake unsafe to eat is misleading, because almost all of this mercury remains harmlessly locked up in the filling. If mercury-amalgam fillings really are dangerous, shouldn't large numbers of people who have had them in their mouths for years exhibit symptoms of mercury poisoning? Where are these sick thousands, the dying and the dead?

Or is this yet another boondoggle concocted by self-serving alarmists and their entourage of personal injury lawyers?

It's great to say patients should demand nontoxic fillings, but patients have to know that there is a problem. I've never had a dentist advise me of the mercury content of the silver fillings.

Probably the biggest reason that people choose the silver fillings is insurance. My dental coverage pays 100 percent of the cost of a silver filling. If I choose the white composite filling, there is a substantial co-pay. If you don't know there's a health issue, then the difference is strictly cosmetic and, for a strictly cosmetic difference, many people will choose the less-expensive option.

Stephanie Chernoff

Simsbury

Insensitive Story

On Student

Lately, I have been unhappy with The Courant. Its endorsement of George Bush, its overzealous bias toward the Red Sox and now the Oct. 27 article about the death of Rachel Payne [Connecticut section, ``Student Killed By Train Was Intoxicated''] have me seriously considering canceling my subscription.

Why do we need to know that this lovely young lady, who was tragically killed in Delaware in September, was intoxicated? The family has to be mournful and distressed, and has obviously gone through enough pain and suffering without The Courant giving readers this additional information. It was extremely insensitive and uncalled for.

Barbara R. Seymour

Manchester

Standardize

Voting Rules

It's time for total election reform. Why should one person's vote count more than anyone else's? The Electoral College does exactly that and it's time to eliminate it. The way it stands now, an illegal alien voting illegally in a state with a high number of Electoral College votes has more say about the winner than a citizen of this great country who lives in a smaller state.

Nationalize election laws so every citizen will have the same right to vote. Some states make potential voters jump though so many hoops that election officials actually control who will and will not have that right.

Extend the number of days to cast a vote. This country is too large to effectively accomplish such a huge task in one day. Having only one day creates many problems that can eliminate one's ability to vote on one particular day. Weather, family problems and a host of other unforeseen circumstances can prevent a vote.